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People who looked blurry seemed to be moving urgently. The sound of something heavy falling, perhaps a water bottle being abandoned, echoed, followed by the quick, retreating footsteps.

I quickly whispered before we missed our business target.

“Lower your voices. I’m human too.”

“…What?”

The people hesitated, but the footsteps didn’t stop. It wasn’t their footsteps. My companions and mercenaries quietly moved in, surrounding the group.

The people who had come to fetch water gulped nervously. Then, hesitantly, they made a sound.

“Ugh?”

“Don’t pretend to be zombies. We’re not bad people. No, this isn’t the time for this. Let’s get out of here first.”

The commotion behind us was unsettling. Zombies, perhaps drawn by the noise, let out eerie howls, and the sound of them pushing through the bushes grew louder.

Our first business target seemed to have picked up the water bottle again, as the sound of sloshing water reached us.

“You seem like newcomers. We’ll guide you to an escape route. We know a good path.”

“No. We’ll handle it.”

I firmly refused. This is a world without trust. Those people might be leading us into a trap.

It’s best to reject offers from strangers unless it’s something we can’t refuse.

With that, we dragged our business target and hid in the darkness.

***

In the dark, you can’t tell zombies from humans. If you move quietly, they won’t follow.

Of course, we sometimes run into something we can’t identify, but they usually retreat upon sensing our overwhelming presence.

“This should be far enough.”

I turned around after entering a secluded building. My companions moved quickly. Jeondohyeong turned on a lantern, while Park Yang-gun dragged furniture to block the windows.

The yellow light of the lantern spread softly.

Only then did my eyes meet those of our business target.

“Four of them? A family?”

A middle-aged couple, a young daughter, and a son. They looked unkempt, their masks frayed from reuse. They seemed malnourished, their skin pale and unhealthy.

At least they were armed. Rusty pipes and knives, gripped tightly, their eyes darting around, scanning us and the room for escape routes.

They were perfect for our business proposal.

“Soldiers? Deserters? No, wait…”

While I assessed them, they assessed us. They stepped back, lowering their weapons upon seeing the mercenaries behind us.

They must have judged that fighting was pointless, given our superior firepower.

“So, what’s this about? What do you want?”

The mother spoke calmly.

I sat down, setting up my machine gun. The barrel pointed at our business target. The mercenaries around them flinched, and the family subtly retreated.

I placed my finger on the trigger and grinned.

“Can you run faster than a bullet? If so, I’ll let you go.”

The business targets froze. They fixed their eyes on me, ready to listen. Their uneasy gazes locked onto the gun barrel.

“Tell us what you want. Water? Food? Women?”

I didn’t need any of that. We had enough water and food, and women were too cliché a weakness for pillagers. Infection, assassination, etc.

The only thing I could trust was a corpse. A confirmed kill wouldn’t betray me.

“That’s no fun. We’re here to share more excitement, more joy. Here.”

I gestured to Sajihyeok. It’s your turn.

Sajihyeok adjusted his clothes. His awkward yet fierce demeanor shifted. His eyes now radiated confidence.

“Haha. Don’t be so tense. We’re all just struggling to survive, right? So, is the water safe? We haven’t used the river. Drinking water with zombies, doesn’t that cause infection?”

His voice was clear, captivating even. The business targets relaxed slightly, nodding. The mother answered.

“We’re not sure. We’re not scientists, and we haven’t tested it. But someone who drank water with zombies turned into one three weeks later.”

“I see. So, no conflicts over water?”

Sajihyeok’s tone made it seem like we were considering moving in, checking out the neighborhood beforehand.

The family exchanged glances, their eyes lighting up strangely. The father stepped forward.

“There are some. Wherever people gather, there’s conflict.”

“Like what?”

“There’s a landlord who claims this is his land and demands water fees. And pillagers sometimes show up. It’s always…”

The daughter quickly added.

“But they’re no threat to you. Some have handguns, but they’re not as armed as you.”

“Handguns, huh.”

Sajihyeok trailed off, seemingly deep in thought.

I quietly observed them. Their scheme was clear. They thought they could use us to eliminate their competition.

Not a bad idea. I nodded slightly, signaling Sajihyeok to proceed.

“Haha. Perfect timing. We’re here for business, and this works out great. Folks, we have a good offer.”

“Business? Offer?”

The father’s eyes twitched. The sudden proposal reignited his caution, but there was little he could do in front of us.

Sajihyeok spread his fingers.

“Tell us who you want dead. We’ll take care of it. Of course, we’ll pay you.”

His fingers folded one by one.

“One tip, 10%. Two tips, 15%. Three tips, 20%. We’ll give you incentives.”

“…”

The family stared blankly at Sajihyeok’s waving fingers. The lantern’s steady light bathed their faces in a warm glow.

Our first business target didn’t hesitate.

“We’ll do it. We’ve been wanting to…”

“If we report 19 people, do we get 100%?”

The son blurted out. He must have done the math quickly.

Sajihyeok shook his head.

“Not 19 people, 19 times. For example, if you want a family of four dead, that counts as one. If you report 19 times like that…”

Suddenly, Sajihyeok glanced at me. He seemed uneasy about making such decisions without consulting me.

I nodded lightly. He wasn’t betraying me or causing harm.

If that’s the case, there was no reason not to trust him. Sajihyeok was the expert.

Sajihyeok smiled.

“When you reach 100%, you’ll become a Challenger-tier member of our organization, part of our family.”

“With you?”

The mercenaries clattered their weapons. It was overwhelming firepower, something only a top-tier survival group could counter.

The family’s expressions were strange. They seemed to have completely lowered their guard, like lottery winners.

Having someone else kill those they disliked was already a win, but getting paid for it? And the chance to join a heavily armed group? From their perspective, there was no reason to refuse.

But this was ultimately pushing themselves off a cliff.

“19 times sounds easy, but it means wiping out 19 small survivor groups.”

That’s no small number. Survivors are hard to find as it is. If we recruit more members and pit them against each other, it’ll get worse. Rumors will spread, isolating them in the local network.

Of course, in this world, immediate gains matter.

“Alright. Let’s do it.”

“Dear, let’s think about it.”

“No. We’ve got people targeting us. We need to protect the kids.”

The family’s brief discussion ended. The father and mother calmly provided details. Their words flowed smoothly, revealing how much they wanted these people dead.

“There’s a landlord, an old man living alone. He carries a shotgun.”

“There’s also a group of troublemakers with handguns.”

The daughter’s eyes sparkled as she clapped her hands.

“The landlord first, then those thugs.”

“We’ll handle it.”

They pushed the larger group to the back since the percentage increases with each report. Not that it mattered much.

Sajihyeok calmed the excited family with a raised hand and explained the rules.

“There are minor rules, like terms and conditions. Simple tips won’t do. You need to provide information. Where they live, how many, what weapons they have. Depending on that, we might ignore the tip.”

Sajihyeok glanced out the window.

“We can’t handle the military or police, you know.”

“We understand.”

The family nodded as if it were obvious. Sajihyeok smiled happily, spreading his hands.

“Alright, then. Our first member. You’ve reported twice, so you’re an Under-tier member. After this is done, one more report will upgrade you to Iron-tier.”

“Is Bronze next after Iron?”

The son asked abruptly. Sajihyeok waved his hand lightly.

“Premium, Diamond, VIP—those sound like scams, don’t they?”

He was referencing games. The son fidgeted, and the father sighed regretfully. Then, he suddenly looked up.

“What’s your organization’s name?”

“That’s…”

Sajihyeok turned to me. Naming wasn’t his domain. From our first member to the mercenaries and companions, all eyes were on me.

A name. We hadn’t had one before. We just gathered, pillaged, and survived.

“Small-scale operations didn’t need one. But now, we need a name.”

I pondered briefly, then decided. Why complicate it? We already had a good name.

Click. I pulled the trigger. The safety was on, so the gun didn’t fire, but everyone jumped in fright.

I smiled and said, “Immortal.”

Immortal. Our chairman’s company name, a name filled with the romance of creating an immortal virus. I, too, once aspired to be a scenario writer, dreaming of creating an immortal masterpiece.

The reaction was immediate. From Jeondohyeong and Sajihyeok to the mercenaries, everyone looked horrified.

“Why use that name? That insane company’s name.”

“Sorry to say, but it’s not a good name. The image is terrible.”

“Immortal? Really?”

The opposition was strong. I tapped my machine gun, trying to justify it.

“It has a good meaning. We will be immortal. We’ll survive in this world. Is there a better name than that?”

The people reluctantly stepped back.

“Do as you please…”

 

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